A decade of network change: Turnover, persistence and stability in personal communities

We analyze changes in intimate ties in personal community networks. Our data come from interviews conducted a decade apart with 33 Torontonians. There is much turnover in these networks, with only 27% of intimate ties persisting. Durable ties tend to be with intimates who have provided social support, are in frequent telephone contact, or are kin. There was almost complete turnover in the networks of those respondents who got married during the decade. By contrast, the amount of turnover in networks is not associated with whether the respondents had children, moved to a different home, or started/stopped doing paid work during the decade.